Thank you for your question regarding an 80-pound weight loss and whether you need a crescent thigh lift, medial thigh lift, buttock lift, Radiesse, or Renuvion. Thank you for your history and your pictures. Upon analyzing your pictures, you appear to have excess skin and fat on the upper medial or inner third of your thigh. After carefully examining your pictures, you do not have much excess skin and fat on your buttocks. Additionally, you do not have much cellulite on either of the buttocks. Therefore, your buttock skin was not that affected by your massive weight loss, except for loss of buttock volume. Therefore, most of your skin or tissue issues are not related to your buttock skin, but rather your thigh skin and fat. Most plastic surgeons would agree that Radiesse or Renuvion will not address excess skin and fat in the upper inner thigh. You need a crescent thigh lift. During a crescent thigh lift, an incision is made in the infra-gluteal fold. That means an incision is made in the "banana roll" between your buttocks and your upper posterior thigh. The incision is carefully placed underneath the buttock, and tissue dissection is carried down the back of your thigh, most extensively in the inner thigh and part of the front of the thigh. Then, the undermined inner thigh flap is advanced to the groin. It is called a crescent thigh lift because the upper inner thigh skin in the shape of a crescent is removed. The procedure begins with you in a face-down position, allowing the posterior aspect of the crescent surgery to be completed first. You are then flipped onto the operating room table, and the front portion of the crescent thigh lift is completed. The crescent thigh lift takes approximately three hours to complete and is performed under general anesthesia with the assistance of an anesthesiologist. The procedure is an outpatient surgery; however, most plastic surgeons recommend staying at a Recovery Center for about two nights. The overnight stay helps with pain control, and the nurses will teach you how to ambulate. However, be warned that the crescent thigh lift is a very technically challenging procedure to perform. Common complications of a crescent thigh lift include the scar drifting down the inner thigh. That means that when you wear certain bathing suits or panties, the crescent-shaped thigh lift scar can be visible outside the panty line on the inner thigh. Other common complications of the crescent thigh lift include labial spread. Labial spread is due to the lateral tension of the incision, which can pull and separate the labia majora and sometimes, even the labia minora. Labial spread can also lead to the opening or gaping of the introitus or entrance to the vagina. The way to minimize these crescent thigh lift complications is to anchor the crescent thigh flap to the pelvic periosteum. The pelvic periosteum is the thick layer on top of the pelvic bone. The crescent thigh lift flap should be anchored to the pelvic periosteum with permanent sutures. I recommend consulting a plastic surgeon who specializes in crescent thigh surgery. Do not be a "guinea pig" for a plastic surgeon who does not perform the crescent thigh lift frequently. Revisions of complications arising from the crescent thigh lift are extremely difficult to correct. I hope that I have answered your questions regarding the thigh reduction. If you have any further questions regarding the thigh lift, thigh reduction, thighplasty, vertical thigh lift, medial thigh lift, spiral thigh lift, crescent thigh lift, or thigh liposuction, please consult a thigh lift expert. Please consult an experienced, board-certified plastic surgeon with a proven track record of performing thigh lifts. Do your research. Make sure your chosen plastic surgeon has performed at least 150 thigh lifts. Make sure they have the before-and-after pictures to prove it. Carefully examine their before-and-after pictures and check their reviews on RealSelf. Consider traveling if you cannot find a thigh lift or reduction specialist in your area. Sincerely, Dr. Katzen, MD, MBA (Aesthetic, Cosmetic and Reconstructive Plastic Surgeon), President of the American Society of Bariatric Plastic Surgeons, Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, Fellow of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, International College of Surgery, and American Board of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, and member of the American Society of Plastic Surgery, American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery and RealSelf Hall of Fame.)
